Tips For Anxiety Relief
I suffer from anxiety. These tips are things that have worked for me, and they just might work for you, too
Anxiety is on the rise in the more current years. Mental health, especially in teens and young adults, is at an all-time high, especially where I live. And one thing I did to help was make a list of things that might alleviate panic attacks, tics (actions that happen against my will due to anxiety) or intrusive thoughts. So I hope that something on this list sparks a fire in you so that you, too, can try to work through whatever anxiety you may be having
Music
If there’s something bothering me or giving me anxiety, like annoying sounds, a loud tv, or busy hallways, the first thing I do is get my clunky, noise-cancelling headphones and play my favorite music. This can come with negative feedback from others, such as claims that you’re ignoring them or blocking everyone out, but always listen to what your heart wants rather than what will please others. I promise it’s worth it. I’ve found that acceptance will come over time, if they truly care.
Fidget Toys
Stress balls and fidget toys became too much of a trend when they were originally created to help autistic children focus in their environments. But if you’re like me and having something to distract your twitching helps, then fidget toys or stress balls is a great option. I keep one in the car if my boyfriend’s driving starts to feel erratic, or take one with me to appointments to alleviate my nerves. Having one prevents me from chewing my fingernails or picking at my cuticles, which are common tics for me when I get overly anxious and don’t have a way to occupy my hands. Gum helps, too, because I can’t chew my fingernails if there’s something in my mouth, and focusing on stretching out the gum or blowing bubbles alleviates anxiety as well.
Hot Bath/Shower
If you start having anxiety or intrusive thoughts at home, one of the most relaxing things you can do is take a nice hot bath or shower, with nice oils or salts or bath products if you have them. I find that the hot water and steam puts my mind into a trance to where I can think, but not think too much where I’m having unpleasant or intrusive thoughts. Or, if you’ve already had your shower for the day, how about a nice foot bath with some foot soak? Eucalyptus blends are good for pain, there’s a melatonin blend for sleep, and Ashwagandha blends specifically are supposed to help with stress, so don’t just go for plain old epsom salt!
Deep Breathing and Meditation
Anyone will tell you that if you have anxiety, to just take some deep breaths, count to ten, all those basic things. But you have to think about it deeper than just controlled breathing. There’s one method which involves keeping your tongue behind your upper teeth while doing a breathing pattern. Breath in for four seconds, hold for seven, and exhale for eight, all while keeping that tongue behind the teeth. When you exhale, make sure your lips form an O shape. Repeat this four times, and you can do this for up to four times a day, but twice is recommended for beginners. As far as meditation goes, I know that’s typical and it’s really hard to master, but if you try hard enough I am sure that there’s at least one type that could help you. For me, the typical meditations for releasing anger and anxiety didn’t work, but the sleep music from headspace helps calm my mind so that I can fall asleep easier and avoid intrusive thoughts that keep me awake at night. Headspace isn’t free, but there’s plenty of youtube videos you could use that are.
Limit Caffeine
Mountain Dew is my fatal flaw when it comes to keeping my diet in check. But as much as caffeine makes us feel good at first, it’s actually been proven to worsen anxiety. Not to mention that if you consume too much caffeine and stop your intake suddenly, that will lead to withdrawal which, from experience, can be up toa week of migraines, heightened anxiety and emotions, and worsened cravings. I try to limit my caffeine intake to one soda a week, because it keeps extra sugars and carbs from the diet, while still rewarding yourself with a treat that won’t cause withdrawal because of the less frequent intake.
Self-Care
I know as much as the next person that self care can be to motivate yourself into doing, as well as costly. But the better you feel on the outside, the better you’ll feel on the inside. The more costly options would be massage, spa treatment, mani pedi, or makeovers, but even just dolling yourself up for yourself or home spa treatment with cheaper store-bought items can make you feel good on the outside, which can boost mood. If you’re in pain, like I often can be, it also helps to try and alleviate that pain. Pain killers have never done anything for me, so instead I rely on special oils and stretches to alleviate that pain. I recommend Doterra deep blue, muscle ease (which is cheaper and can be found at most stores), or Elemis oils, which is the most expensive option. As for stretches, there are great exercise band and non band stretches you can find on the internet by searching about it on the internet.
Cleaning and organizing
If cleaning and organizing is something that stresses you out more and heightens your anxiety, please skip over this entirely. But if you’re like me and you find comfort and cleaning and organizing, take a look around, find something you haven’t cleaned or organized in a while, and get to work. You could even play music during this time to keep the positive clean up energy. Do this until you feel better. The more clutter or chaos your environment has, the more clutter and chaos your mind can have as well.
Quality Time
One thing that always makes me feel better is spending quality time with the people or animals that I love. Even if it’s just simple things like playing Minecraft with my boyfriend, or laying down on the couch for a moment to pet my cats, it will make you feel so much better. One of my cats often comes to lay on me at night if he discovers I’ve gotten up in the middle of the night, which helps me to fall back asleep. But not all of us have pets, or people that we can see in that instance to make us feel better, so a good alternative would be to look at pictures of cute animals or your loved ones to help cause similar feelings.
Go to Bed Early
If you’ve had a hard day filled with a lot of anxiety or stress, the best thing you can do for yourself is go to bed early. Not too early, because that will ruin your sleep schedule for at least a week, but an hour or hour and a half early, to help you recharge so that the next day, you feel better. I know a lot of us like to stay up and binge watch or read to help, but you’ll regret it the next morning when you can’t keep your eyes open and your mood has worsened.
Eat Healthy, Exercise
Those are the two solutions no one wants to hear when asking about how to alleviate anxiety, but after working on this aspect of my life for so long, I can tell you it’s true. I got a gym membership and started attending yoga and aqua aerobics class, as well as shorter intensive exercise sessions in between, and while I felt sore, it was a good sore and I always felt so proud of myself. Yoga especially is a great way to alleviate stress and anxiety and because it focuses on the breath, can help you in meditating your mind if you practice enough. With my diet, I’d been eating a lot of junk food and it wasn’t until it got really bad that I realized how sick it was making me. I got rid of a majority of the junk food, started eating more fruits, vegetables and fiber, and that too has significantly helped my appetite, mood, and gut health which makes me happier all around.
Talk!
I know that talking is hard for a lot of people, but if you can have at least one, just one person that you trust enough who will give you the safe space you need to vent, whether it be friend, family, or therapist, you need to use that opportunity. Therapy is extremely helpful because they can help pick strategies for you personally and will have a better idea of what will help and what won’t, but it is expensive, so if that’s not an option then I ask that you at least have a trusted person who lets you vent healthily without any negative repercussion afterwards. There’s often a person in your life who alleviates anxiety for you, and it’s important that you find that person.
